Word reached me last night that the last 2 hero class vessels would be sailing on their own to Victoria, Departing today. CCGS M Charles M.B and CCGS Captain Goddard M.S.M are currently working up in the basin, with CCGS M. Charles M.B giving Portsmouth Virgina as her destination, with an eta on the 14th.

Hansa Heavy Lift recently dropped off some spreaders at Pier 28. there is Speculation that these may be for lifting the 2 west coast bound. Mid Shore Patrol Vessels.

I went looking for a tender award notice – I found none. I did discover however that the project was re-tendered in July. This new tender removed language about delivery to a Foreign port, and now requires the vessels to be delivered to BC. the re-tender also corresponds with an application for a coasting trade license for the unnamed vessel. I was also unable to find a Decision on the coasting trade application.

The Trip is requested to be As soon as possible, between November 1, 2014 and September 30, 2015, and the Tender closed September 24th, so we are within timelines, and perhaps are waiting for a final contract to be signed. From Questioning in the tender process, it appears that Dockwise and Hansa Heavy Lift were both interested in Bidding.

Earlier we reported on a RFP to transport the last 2 hero class vessels to Victoria. The rfp seemed to hint that the 2 vessels could be delivered to a US port, thus averting cabotage requirements.

The CCGS has now filed a request for a coasting trade licence for a to be determined heavy lift vessel to transport the 2 hero class boats to victoria. this suggests that an rfp winner has been selected but not announced.

Seems to me a good PR Move for the feds to sail the vessels via Northwest passage – though such a trip is beyond there design range – the could be resupplied on route by other larger CCGS vessels or the RCN.

I suspect Dockwise or jumbo will be awarded the contract. The range of dates is almost a full year – Nov 1 2014 to Sept 30 2015

The government announced the acceptance of the eighth of the Canadian Coast Guard’s new Hero Class vessels, the CCGS M. Charles M.B.The CCGS M. Charles M.B. was named after Seaman Martin Charles, S.C., M.B., of Bamfield, British Columbia, and Hereditary Chief of the Nitinat Band. Martin Charles, now deceased, devoted his life and career to saving lives. He earned the Medal of Bravery for his instrumental role in a search and rescue incident that began with a sunken fishing vessel and ended with the crash of the helicopter assisting in the rescue efforts.

This Mid-Shore Patrol Vessel will be based on the West Coast and was constructed in Halifax, Nova Scotia by Irving Shipbuilding Inc. A formal naming and dedication ceremony will follow when the vessel arrives in its home region.

Minister of Justice, Peter MacKay officially welcomed the new Canadian Coast Guard Ship CCGS Corporal McLaren M.M.V.into service at a ceremony in Halifax, Nova Scotia today. CCGS Corporal McLaren M.M.V.is the sixth of nine Hero Class vessels to join the Coast Guard fleet. It will be used to support the Department of Fisheries and Oceans conservation and protection programs.

The vessel is named after Corporal Mark Robert McLaren, from Peterborough, Ontario, who served on two missions to Afghanistan. On December 5, 2008, the vehicle in which he was travelling was hit by a roadside bomb, and at the age of 23, Corporal Mark Robert McLaren was killed. He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Military Valour.